How Do You Know If a Wild Animal Needs Help?

An infant fawn, tiny jack rabbit, baby squirrels and young ducklings that were recently brought to San Rafael’s Wildcare animal hospital can only mean one thing — we are at the height of baby animal season.

Spring guarantees a busy season for the staff and volunteers at the nonprofit Wildcare — the only wildlife rehabilitation center in Marin. 

Many wildlife patients, such as baby squirrels, are moved off site to foster homes in Marin where they are rehabilitated. See Wildcare's Alison Hermance talk about fostering young squirrels in the above video. The two Western Gray squirrels in the video were injured after falling out of their nest.

A young fawn was brought into the hospital on April 8 after Corte Madera residents noticed it had been in their yard for three days without its mother. They called the Marin Humane Society, which brought the malnourished fawn to Wildcare. 

Last week Wildcare staff attempted to reunite the fawn with its mother, but the attempt was unsuccessful and the fawn was put into foster care, where it is eating well and now thriving, Hermance said.

Considering the large amount of open space in Marin, it’s likely residents will come into contact with a baby bird, squirrel or other young wild animal at some point.

But sometimes animals can appear to be in need of help when they actually aren’t.

Fawns, for example, are often mistaken for abandoned because a doe can leave her baby curled up in the grass for more than 12 hours while she spends the day foraging. (Random fact: To help keep them safe, fawns have no scent to predators.)

Also, songbirds can feed their young on the ground for several days until the birds learn how to fly. People often think young birds are injured because they only see them hopping around on the ground, according to Hermance.

More than 90 percent of the 3,000 to 4,0000 patients Wildcare treats (and usually releases) every year are orphaned or injured by interaction with humans or pets, according to Hermance.

IF YOU FIND AN ORPHANED OR INJURED ANIMAL…

So, how can you tell if an animal needs your help?

First, evaluate the situation to determine if the animal is really in distress. Wildcare officials created the five “C’s” that can be used to determine if an animal needs help:

1. Is it Crying?
2. Is it Coming toward you (approaching people)?
3. Is it Covered with blood or insects?
4. Has it been Caught by a cat or a dog?
5. Is it Cold?

If the animal does need help: 

• Call the 24-hour Wildlife Hotline ( you can also call if you have questions) 456-7283 (SAVE)
• Do not give the animal it foods, liquids or medication unless a licensed wildlife rehabilitator told you to do so
• Use gloves to pick up the creature and put it in a dark box (Another random fact: it’s actually a myth that if you touch an animal or bird with your bare hands the mother will reject it). 

Wildcare officials are preparing for a major fundraising campaign to help them move a new site, at the Silveira Ranch property on Smith Ranch Road, where they hope to move in a few years after making upgrades.

The 4,100-square-foot San Rafael facility — which includes a courtyard area full of birds and animals that couldn’t be reintroduced to the wild for various reasons — is the same location where the nonprofit was created in 1994. The site had already been serving as a natural science museum-cum-animal hospital since the 1970’s. 

WANT TO HELP WILDCARE DURING BABY ANIMAL SEASON?

Wildcare is looking for the following donations:

• Nuts in the shell (except peanuts)
• Creamy sugar-free peanut butter
• Apples, berries, grapes, persimmons
• Fruit-flavored yogurt
• Lettuce (romaine, green or red, not iceberg)
• Heating pads (with no auto-shut off)
• Snuggle safe heating discs
• Gram scales (within 1-2 gram accuracy)
• Gift certificates to Safeway

To make a donation, call 453-1000. 

Wildcare also offers a variety of volunteer opportunities, educational programs and rehabilitation programs that include people offering habitat for bat boxes, bluebird boxes or owl boxes. 

For more information about Wildcare, check out their website.

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